CHAPTER 90: SHAMELESSNESS IS THE WAY!

’System.’ Johan said in the calmest possible voice in his mind.

[Yes host?]

The blue text appeared, glittering, as if all smiles.

’That winking face at the third penalty was the most unfunniest shit I’ve seen in my entire life. And as a guy who used to be chronically online, it takes some serious skill to make me announce something as funny as this.’

The blue screen seemed to tremble, as if offended, but ultimately chose to vanish dramatically, like a tsundere going through a teen breakup—probably never using the winking face again.

Johan didn’t rush to make a choice, just thinking deeply about how unfunny a system could possibly be.

The system didn’t provide any time limit either, and it seemed like he could stack the quests. There was no need to do it immediately.

"...Johan, is something wrong?" Nolan asked cautiously, strangely looking at Johan grinning while staring at empty space, wondering if he was having an episode like in the trial, again.

"Hm?" Johan was startled by Nolan’s sudden call, shaking his head quickly—trying to assure everything was fine, something Nolan didn’t buy, just giving him a look filled with pity.

Johan’s lips parted, and just as he was about to say something, Nolan’s face grew serious.

Nolan smiled regretfully, "You’re so adamant about your choice, I don’t think I can change your mind, so I’ll just give up."

Johan nodded thoughtfully, "That’s actually admirable of you. Most people never understand when to stop. Anyways, I should be good to go, no?" he asked suspiciously at the end.

He, of course, didn’t buy that ’I will just give up

’ crap.

"Actually, I wanted to tell you something else," Nolan added softly.

’See!’ Johan chuckled to himself, he knew his manipulative kind just that well.

"Even though we did not become allies, I really wish the best to you. And also, don’t you too want to know how I became like this?" Nolan said mysteriously, shoving his hand into the spiraling worms, which instantly started eating his hand.

Johan, suppressing his disgust, smiled softly, "Actually, I am very curious. I would appreciate that. And it’s not like we can’t ever become allies..." he said shamelessly, ignoring the fact that he was just considering option four—and maybe would’ve even chosen it, if not for the penalty, and Nolan’s strength.

"Haha, that’s good to know." Nolan laughed, then instantly, his face grew hardened.

"I will warn you first, this knowledge alone is enough to corrupt someone without the Holy aura.

You are fine because I can sense two different kinds of Holy aura inside you, along with the fact that you’re biologically similar to the God Tree. Just don’t share it with anyone—not even a Divine stage."

Johan nodded seriously. He had no intentions anyway. But now maybe he would tell Melodis just to confirm what Nolan would say, and ask for Melodis’ opinion on it.

"Divine stage is not the limit of a living creature. It’s not even close to the limit.

Creatures like Ymir, Lucifer’s original body which was destroyed by Ymir, Indra, Elf Goddess—are all beyond this.

And even they did not reach the limit of what some creatures are capable of." Nolan’s voice was filled with passion—yet fear.

Johan’s body froze, the urge to jump off a very tall building increasing the longer he heard.

’Why the fuck did it have to be this world where I was reincarnated? I played a lot of other games too!’ Johan screamed in his mind.

"I was one of the few Divine stages who was able to find out about their existence—mostly because of Vivi ascending to one... and the only one to fear them. These creatures have no sense of morality, only one simple thought: conquer. They only want to become stronger, cause more destruction, and conquer more universes," Nolan said with a voice filled with disgust.

"So, is the Creator just watching it happen?" Johan asked in a mocking tone.

He finally figured out what the next DLC was about... And he wasn’t mad about the spoilers—he was grateful.

Now he knew what to avoid the most, because there was no way he was fighting horrors beyond even top-tier fighters, and something out of his understanding.

"I wouldn’t dare question that if I were you. She’s watching us, after all!" Nolan said casually, shaking his head at the mocking tone of Johan.

"Cough! Cough!"

’Uhm, what the actual fuck!?’ Johan coughed repeatedly, as if pretending he never said that.

"I really love you, Goddess! You’re the most benevolent, most beautiful, most powerful. If you were here, I would kiss your feet. Praise the Goddess! Praise the Goddess! Nolan, say it with me, praise the Goddess!" Johan shamelessly closed his eyes, joined his hands, and chanted loudly.

Nolan stared at Johan for a while, as if judging his every ancestor, then hesitantly said too, "Praise the Goddess."

"Anyways, they’re not something you ’fight’ with. You can’t punch an earthquake, can you?" Nolan asked curiously, his voice scoffing.

Johan’s eyes narrowed, "No, maybe not directly, but we can definitely fight it by preparing safety tools, predicting it’s coming, then preparing for it... and in a sense, defeating it," Johan said seriously, his voice certain.

Nolan’s lips parted for a while, surprised by Johan’s answer.

"I-I mean, I tried fighting one of them. That thing just had to glance at me—not even directly. I just had a dream in which I saw it, and the next day, I was the closest I had ever been to death.

My Aether core lost all balance. Thankfully, I had a divine artifact (this place) that let me spread my consciousness out, and allowed me to cut all connections with my soul, which was the one corrupted. I lost a lot of my progress on my Aether abilities, and for the last million years, I’ve been diligently practicing to gain it all back..." Nolan said sorrowfully, a bit angered by Johan’s casual tone about it all—it wasn’t this simple.

"You’re alive, aren’t you?" Johan asked with a firm voice. "And you’re already planning to fight them again, right? If they were as scary as you say, then definitely, you should be dead. And if by luck you survived, you would’ve just tried to avoid them as much as possible—not feel so much hatred toward them."